Parenting Courses

We provide group and individual courses for parents who are struggling to relate to their children or teenagers. All our courses are held in the Wellington region. If you are from another part of the country, we can help you to find a course in your area

Group course

“Different Approach, Different Response” is an eight-week course focusing on improving the relationship with your teens. The course focus on giving information, skill-building, and working therapeutically with participants to help create improved relationships and long-lasting change.

The course is informed by the latest research-based information on topics such as teenage brain development, child-parent attachment, human fight/flight and other responses, and the dynamics of family patterns.

“Really knowledgeable and empathetic! Fantastic course. It has really helped me become more mindful and parenting has become much much lovelier and home life & the kids much smoother and drama-free”

Parenting course participant, Term 1, 2018

Topics

The group’s work is loosely structured around key topics that provide initial input for conversation. While some topics are core and always provided, others are provided depending on participants’ needs, as is the order of the topics.

The following topics will be covered in this course:

How teenage brain changes impact behaviour and why parents may be frustrated in their attempts to communicate

How the human brain responds to stress and what this means for parenting

Ways we can view long term human relationships and how as children and as adults we are motivated to seek or avoid contact

Ways we can view family dynamics and respond differently.

Depending on participants’ needs and the time we have available in this eight-week programme, we can also add a number of other topics including:

Understanding discipline and limit-setting

The importance of sleep and nutrition for the teen

The impact of high use of online gaming and social media and management of this

Drug and alcohol impacts and our role as parents

Sexuality, dating, and supporting teens appropriately

Approach

Our Parent Help programme initiates helpful changes through using a positive, empathetic, and compassionate engagement with the group (i.e. a therapeutic approach). This helps to create a safe space in which group members are able to share their own family dynamics and concerns.

The therapists’ modelling of the engagement needed for teens helps group members to experience a different approach as a parent. In summary, we aim to build your capability to deepen your relationship with your teen and thereby help change your teen’s behaviours.

“Has changed my opinion of my daughter to such an extent it feels like a miracle!”